Nikita Panin

Count Nikita Ivanovich Panin was an influential Russian statesman and political mentor to Catherine the Great for the first 18 years of her reign (1762–1780). In that role, he advocated the Northern Alliance, closer ties with Frederick the Great of Prussia and the establishment of an advisory privy council. His staunch opposition to the Partitions of Poland led to his being replaced by the more compliant Prince Alexander Bezborodko. Catherine appointed many men to the Senate who were related to Panin's powerful family.